Week 31
Jeremiah 4-6
It has been more than 350 years since Judah was exalted under the
leadership of king David, and they have been in steady decline ever since he
died. The Lord speaks against the pride of the false prophets and priests in
Jerusalem, who persist in leading the people astray, and calls for all to humble
themselves and return to Him. Yet, they will not do that, and the Lord tells them
that their enemies from the North will be coming to sack Jerusalem, and no one
will be able to declare their power and riches afterwards.
Jeremiah 7-9
God sent Jeremiah to the temple in Jerusalem to declare the Lord’s words
against Judah, saying that no one should think that they will escape His
judgement for their pervasive idolatries and disobedience. Just like God judged
Israel, and Shiloh, the first place in Israel where His presence dwelt, Jerusalem
and the temple will become a heap of ruins, and the people will be scattered in
the nations.
Even from the beginning, in the days of Moses, the Lord was only looking for
obedience and love from His people, and none of their sacrifices are pleasing to
Him when they refuse to obey Him.
The Lord continues to call Judah and Jerusalem to repentance, but promises
desolations to come when they refuse to hear and obey.
Jeremiah 10-13
What foolishness is demonstrated by all who form their own gods, and who
refuse to serve and obey the One God Who made everything!
In chapter 11 the Lord speaks through Jeremiah to condemn His people for
disobeying His covenant with them. In Deuteronomy 28 the Lord spoke through
Moses, telling Israel of all the blessings they would enjoy if they simply obeyed
God’s laws, and all the curses that would come upon them when they refused to
obey them. The Lord is putting His people on notice that they have persisted in
disobeying His covenant with them, and He was preparing great disasters upon
them for what they were doing.
In chapter 12 Jeremiah complains to the Lord about the treachery and
wickedness of the people, and asks how long they will be allowed to persecute
him. The Lord responds in verse 5, saying “if you have become worn out in
struggling with the footmen, how will you be able to run with horses?” In other
words, God told him that there was much worse to come, and that he needed to
prepare himself for the long run against them in Judah.
The Lord tells Jeremiah in chapter 13 to take a new wrap and travel to the
Euphrates river and bury it there, which was a one-way trip of around 500 miles.
After some time the Lord tells him to go back and dig it up, and he finds it almost
completely destroyed by the water and dirt. God uses this imagery to speak of
His plans for Judah, who will be taken away by the Babylonians (located on the
Euphrates river), and they will suffer punishment and slavery for their persistent
refusal to obey God.
Jeremiah 14-16
For the sins of the people, as well as the horrible sins fostered by the wicked
king Manasseh, the Lord tells Jeremiah He is going to first send a great famine in
the land of Judah, and then it will be followed up by an invasion of Israel’s
enemies with even greater disasters to come. He says “repent now, and you can
avoid these things.”
In chapter 16 the Lord tells Jeremiah not to take a wife, and not to have
children in Judah, as they will be killed when He brings about these disasters,
and they are going to happen in his (Jeremiah’s) lifetime.
Jeremiah 17-20
The Lord said that the hearts of men are desperately wicked - He knows what
is in the heart of every person. He also said “cursed is the man who trusts in
man”, and “blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord”. We cannot trust even
ourselves, but only Him! It’s interesting that God sends Jeremiah to the gates of
Jerusalem to preach against those who violate the Sabbath, and says that He will
bless them if they just do this one thing (honor the Sabbath by ceasing from their
labors) - yet, no one listens.
In chapter 18 the Lord uses the example of the potter to tell Judah that He is
sovereign, and that even though He has designed disasters for His people, He
will relent if they would just repent and turn back to Him.
Jeremiah tells the priests and leaders in Judah that the Lord is going to bring
great destruction and devastation upon them and Jerusalem. Many will die, and
many more will be taken as slaves to Babylon. The leaders in Judah arrest and
do violence to Jeremiah in response to the word of the Lord that he spoke, and
he bemoans the day of his birth.
2 Kings 22-23:28 and 2 Chronicles 34:8-35:19
Josiah was 8 years old when his father Amon died, and he reigned as king in
Judah for 31 years. Josiah was the most faithful and godly king in Judah since
David. He instituted a program of eliminating all of the places of idol worship in
Israel, which even included Bethel, in the (former) northern kingdom. He initiated
a temple restoration project, to clean it out, and to bring back the worship of
Jahweh in that place.
It’s an amazing thing to consider that during this temple renovation project,
the priests stumbled upon the book of the law, which had apparently been lost in
the previous 50+ years of the reigns of Manasseh and Amon. There were
apparently none who remembered God’s laws until His Word was discovered in
the temple, and when Josiah read what was written there, he was devastated.
He sought the Lord, and started a revival in Judah that would last until his death,
some 12-13 years later, and God promised that He would not bring about His
judgement on Judah until after Josiah died.
Josiah died in battle with Pharaoh Necho, and all Israel mourned him,
including Jeremiah the prophet.
Nahum and 2 Kings 23:29-37 and 2 Chronicles 35:20-36:5 and Jeremiah
22:10-17
The prophet Nahum speaks the word of the Lord against Nineveh, the capital
of Assyria, as God plans to bring them down from their position of rulership in the
middle east. During the days of king Josiah, the Lord sends Pharaoh Necho to
execute war on Assyria, which is when Josiah is killed because of
presumptuously challenging Necho to fight.
After Josiah is killed, his son Jehoahaz becomes king in Judah for 3 months,
however Pharaoh Necho takes him as captive to Egypt, where he will die. Necho
sets up the brother of Jehoahaz, Eliakim to be his vassal king in Judah, and
renames him Jehoiakim. Jehoiakim is an evil king, and will reign for 11 years in
Jerusalem.
On a side note, king Nebuchadnezzar will conquer Pharaoh Necho at the
famous battle of Carchemish in 605 BC, and he laid siege to Jerusalem about 20
years later, when the city and temple were destroyed, and the survivors taken
captive to Babylon.